A Shockingly Indepth Guide to Razor! (6.82 Updated!!)

Introduction

Razor the Lightning Revenant

WORK IN PROGRESS

Welcome to my In-depth guide to Razor. Feel free to comment and post suggestions as they will be taken into consideration. This is my first ever guide on DotaFire. I hope you enjoy it and of course, help you to master Razor!

Make sure to check out Razor's stats and abilities on his hero page or right here on DotaFire to get a quick idea on how Razor works.

Razor is my favorite and most successful hero. His personality and Game-Play suits me and thus I enjoy every match I play with him.

If you are new to Position Based Heroes Razor is a great hero to begin with.

For those who have seen the Dota 2 Official Character Roles Razor has the status of Carry, Durable and Nuker this is true in most cases, but when playing in pubs or teams who are skilled / competent at Dota 2 you will find that Razor is on a tight time restriction. This is due to other Carries easily overpowering Razor beyond the 35 minute mark. Make sure to end the Game early or have a backup Hard Carry. If you don't... [SHIFT] + [ENTER] GG [Enter].

Updates and To-Do's

Updated for patch 6.82!

Static Link Is now affected by Linken's Sphere :( Damn you icefrog...
Static Link Costs 50 Mana now... WHYYYYY
Plasma Field Less Min damage... Again WHYYY!!
Eye of the Storm Strikes Reduced??!! to quote the Stanley parable announcer pack: "Oh they're just toying with us now."

Added a new Starting Items path on Builds 2 and 3. CHECK EM OUT!!

Oh also, Thanks to BrecMadak for encouraging me to update this :P

The Pros and Cons of The Lightning Revenant

The Pros

~Has the second fastest Missile Speed in the game at 2000. ( Gyrocopter and Sniper have 3000)
~ Razor's Early and Mid Game is Unrivaled!
~Extremely fast due to Unstable Current's 16% Movement Speed gain.
~Hard to pin down thanks to the Purge from Unstable Current.
~Strong Pusher with Aghanim's Scepter.
~Can Carry, provided you end the game quickly.

The Cons

~Paper-thin HP
~Deceiving Attack Animation (The animation finishes milliseconds before the projectile has hit. Purchasing a Desolator or Eye of Skadi reveals the velocity of the projectile)
~No form of Crowd Control
~Tapers off Late game
~Horrible against Movement Punishers like Bloodseeker

The Lightning Revenant has his ups and downs but once you overcome his weaknesses Razor can be a rewarding asset to any team.

Razor Matchups

Razor is a very situational hero. There are certain heroes who Razor should never be picked against. On the other hand there are some Heroes where Razor can hands down stomp against. This being said I would not recommend picking Razor unless the enemy team consists of one or more (preferably 2 or more) Heroes who fill the following criteria.

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A single rule of thumb when playing Razor is asking yourself one simple question:
Can I pull off a full Static Link against [insert hero name here] without dedicated help from my team?

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So with that in mind lets look at the heroes you can comfortably pick Razor against.

Razor's Prey

Beastmaster cant do much against Razor. Primal Roar will proc Unstable Current allowing for you to chase him down and easily kill him. Keep in mind that it is never safe to head on fight a Beastmaster when the enemy team is around. Remember to hold your ground and position yourself so you can take him down without drawing too much attention.

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Dragon Knight cant really deal with Razor before the 35 minute mark. Unless the enemy Dragon Knight has great Map Awareness, his team around and a Blink Dagger Razor can easily overpower a Dragon Knight since his only disable is point target and will proc Unstable Current

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Lifestealer has nothing to stop Razor from ending this re-animated pizza's life. Static Link goes through Rage, Razor's naturally low Hp pool makes Feast useless and finally Open Wounds will proc Unstable Current. On another note, Static Link will continue to drain even if Lifestealer has used Infest. (Providing you stay within the range from the Infested Creep/Hero)

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Astral Imprisonment is how Outworld Devourer gets his last hitting from and thus he preys on Intelligence heroes. Razor can take Astral Imprisonment and use it to his advantage! Since Razor will not lose damage thanks to him being an agility Hero and the slow from Unstable Current allows Razor to link and steal all the damage Outworld Devourer attempted to get from you. A good item to compliment this strategy is a Magic Wand/ Magic Stick since it will restore your E-MP (Effective Mana Points) and as soon as the debuff from Astral Imprisonment wears off it will restore a larger portion of your Mana.

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I personally always pick Razor against a Phantom Assassin. Both of Phantom Assassins spells hurt her more than Razor. Her Stifling Dagger will proc Unstable Current and Phantom Strike will purge her of the Attack Speed bonus. Not to mention Coup de Grace will have no effect if she has negative 200+ Damage!

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Early in the game Sven cannot handle Razor as the only thing he can do is throw out his single target Storm Hammer which will slow him as a consequence of Unstable Current. Although Warcry may increase his survivability, by the time the spell makes a difference is when Razor should have his Phase Boots. Keep in mind that God's Strength, as intimidating it may be will not be too much trouble if you can kite Sven around a little. Remember you as Razor are stronger than any Low Mobility Carry before 35 minutes. Do not underestimate Razor's power during his peak time.

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As all the other heroes above, Wraith King only has Wraithfire Blast and it is single target spell. Simply Static Link Wraith King if Reincarnation is not up and proceed to easily kill him or kill him first then once Reincarnation kicks in, Static Link the king to bring him down.

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Heroes that Razor can handle with Care

Abaddon is not too much of a problem to Razor but Borrowed Time and Aphotic Shield can usually help Abaddon survive long enough to get reinforcements. Do not commit to chase Abaddon unless it is safe.

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Alchemist is an easy target early game but keep in mind of Chemical Rage can outheal a partial Static Link and a fully brewed Unstable Concoction with Acid Spray can put you in a bad position.

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Axe is dangerous! but slow... his brute damage comes from Counter Helix and Heroes being close to him. When engaging an Axe keep your distance because you never know when the RNG gods will favor this steroid filled tank and will dunk you like no tomorrow.

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Doom Bringer Dooms. Being Doomed is not good. Remember Razor cannot deal with other Heroes without Static Link so make sure to unload your spells on him first.

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Razor can handle Drow Ranger provided you have the vision/detection to get into her personal space and remove her ult. Due to her low hp, killing her should not be too much trouble. Make sure you do not over-extend when vision is limited.

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When versing a Legion Commander remember that if she Duels you before you Static Link the chances of you winning the Duel decreases and chances of dying are very high. Now if you level up Unstable Current and the legion tries to Duel you while alone, you will most of the time survive as 2 seconds of the duel will be her trying to walk up to you due to the purge from Unstable Current. So best case scenario is that Legion Commander Duels you and you manage to pull a Static Link.

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Now it would seem like a good idea to pick Razor against a Shadow Fiend the only problem is that if Shadow Fiend gets a small advantage over you in lane, or if your team falls behind, Shadow Fiend is able to burst you down before you can even pull a Static Link

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Skywrath Mage is very squishy, the only thing you need to look out for is Mystic Flare. both Arcane Bolt and Ancient Seal will proc Unstable Current but try to Static Link before the Ancient Seal silence kicks in.

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Both Razor and Sniper are Position based Heroes so make sure to take him out isolated. Finally Sniper can still take a Razor down with Headshot procs as they cannot be evaded and deal a considerate amount of damage.

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Sunder is absolutely horrifying if executed well so do not attempt to fight him without a disable. Aside from that, Soul Keeper's Hp pool is so small that a few seconds of Static Link and a Plasma Field can chunk him.

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Undying is a very strong hero and should not be underestimated but with Eye of the Storm you can make his zombies redundant as they will be struck down quickly due to them being the lowest hp targets around.

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Ok so. Ursa he's dangerous... Ursa wont give 2 ducks about Static Link! The trick here is to kite Ursa until link has had at least 5 seconds. From here on hopefully you will be able to kill Ursa faster than Ursa can kill you. I suggest you have some form of disable with you like Shadow Shaman or Lion.

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Heroes Razor cannot deal with

What all these heroes have in common is the fact that they have built in abilities that can quickly break Static Link. That being said do not feel as if Razor cant do anything to these heroes, As long as you have considerate lockdown and disables you can still manage to steal damage from these heroes and unleash it on them. Although if your team does no co-operate well and you have no solid lockdown, Razors power will be wasted as a 370 nuke will not help you past 25 minutes. Request for Silences and purchasing Orchid Malevolence also have a strong Lockdown team that consists of Heroes like Lion, Shadow Shaman, Tiny, Rubick etc. Simply Put if you know for certain that you cannot maintain a Static Link do not play Razor, If you are confident that your team can lock down heroes and give you room to carry for 35 mins then pick Razor but adjust your build to suit conditions i.e. take more points in Unstable Current and Plasma Field over level 4 Static Link and leave Eye of the Storm until you need it. A side note on Viper, He is the kind of hero that Razor cannot deal with due to his movement speed and attack speed reduction and although Viper Strike is single targeted, the damage will stack and Razor being so frail will not stand a chance against Nethertoxin. Also a quick Note on Weaver, Static Link will also continue to drain even after a Time Lapse if the Weaver returns within the Static Link range. Most teams will have mixtures of high mobility heroes and low mobility, whether they are supports or simply carries with no escapes, make sure to Static Link the Hero who you think you will pull off a full link, feel free to unload your stolen damage against these more frail heroes.

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Razor's Lane Allies

These Heroes are great to be in a lane with because they all have some form of reliable Crowd Control i.e. Slows and Stuns. This is exactly what Razor needs to score early kills and dominate in the Early/Late Mid Game. Most of the time I play Razor, I credit my supports who help me get otherwise unobtainable kills. Keep in mind that you have to keep your supports health in mind when engaging as creeps tend to aggro the person who issued an attack command last. this would most likely be your support. so make sure you are both aware of engaging safely. This is important as a good trade for Razor is having a kill or two without losing your supports and put your opponent ahead. This makes a huge difference when engaging on heroes Razor loses against in the long run. Some Notes: Having a Mirana as a lane partner is not always a bad thing if you are scoring kills. Sacred Arrow can easily guarantee an early first blood, provided you are in a good position to engage. But having both heroes in the same lane for an extended period of time is not recommended. Razor and Mirana both need farm to sustain themselves for when they are needed. this is especially true on Razor if you haven't scored kills early or farmed enough of your cores, you do become a hindrance. A note on Tusk: the same story as Mirana goes here, if you are not scoring kills, you are setting you and Tusk back. Make sure to have some form of way to keep both of these heroes farmed up. A note on Sven: If your Sven is playing a hard carry role. You as Razor better find some other place to farm as you will not be winning this game for your team if you find yourself in a situation where you have to be in this lane configuration. Although, Sven is sometimes played as a roaming support type Hero. if this is the case make sure to score some early kills with his Stormhammer or you will set each other back. A final little note on Slark, he has a very similar role to Razor and that is countering carries. If both of you are in the same lane bare in mind that you both gain your strength from early dominance, if you are not dominating your time period then you are setting yourselves back. But if on the other hand you are getting these kills having this lane is not bad at all.

Razors Hero Counters

Not everything is Storms and rain with Razor specially when facing the following heroes. They tend to strike Razor's weakness and that is being bottled up and made to stand still. Also note that the previous heroes who Razor cannot deal with counter him pretty effectively. Be on your guard but play your cards right and you will be able to turn these pests into delightful prey!

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So Bane is notorious for having the ability to disable up to 3 heroes at one time! The biggest concern that Bane poses is Fiend's Grip. It goes through magic immunity and it feels like it lasts forever! If you find that bane is targeting you frequently, grab a Linken's Sphere this will partially solve the problem. But always be careful around this horse thing. it will really put you in a bad position.

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Flaming Lasso is a nasty spell that goes through magic immunity. This will be your main concern. The reason why Heroes that forcefully move other Heroes are a huge problem to Razor is because he needs freedom to kite. if you are being pulled into the entirety of the enemy team it will leave you defenseless! Play safe around Batrider and eliminate any opportunity for a Flaming Lasso either by leaving his vision area or purchasing a Linken's Sphere

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Bloodseeker is not as strong as people make him out to be as he does need to somewhat get close to his victims to secure his kills. If you are unfortunate enough to be chosen for Rupture (aside of standing still) hold your ground! As he approaches find the opportunity to Static Link Bloodseeker. By this time me may have chosen to use Bloodrage on you to prevent any more spells. As Razor this would be one of those times to Man up! and attack the Bloodseeker with huge bonuses of damage! Most try-hard Bloodseeker players grab a Blade Mail and Dagon to secure their kills. Here is where Black King Bar comes in handy. If you know the Bloodseeker is using this method, do not hesitate to use the Black King Bar. Most of the time if you are not surrounded entirely by their team and Bloodseeker is attempting to take you on solo, you can punish him easily if you stand your ground. Also Grabbing a Linken's Sphere can open up an opportunity for Razor to smite Bloodseeker.

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Although difficult to pull off, Disruptor can be a huge problem for Razor if his reflexes are faster. Static Storm and Kinetic Field forces Razor to be confined to a small space unable to use items or spells. Not to mention chasing far will make Glimpse stronger if executed well. When versing a Disruptor have your hand ready on your Black King Bar and make sure to pop it before you cant thanks to the Mute of Static Storm

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Lone Druid can be a huge problem if you are having a bad day and it is Entangling Claws season. Make sure to kite around the Spirit Bear and focus Lone Druid down. Good practice is to Static Link the Spirit Bear and unload all of its strength against the usually Squishy Lone Druid.

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Generally the only reason why I would ever considering picking Razor against a Magnus would have to be to hear his quotes against him. I kid you not, this is the only reason. Magnus' Reverse Polarity and Skewer will easily put you in a bad position. Not to mention he can turn any member of his party into a huge damage dealer thanks to Empower. Getting around this colossal initiator is difficult but a good map awareness and some communication you can find ways to not be pinned down in his Reverse Polarity

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Slark is just too slippery and a Pounce coupled with Dark Pact will chunk you easily and leave you exposed. Unless you are absolutely stomping with Razor you will encounter difficulties with Slark. Although Shadow Dance cannot be detected by Dust of Appearance or Sentry Wards, Static Link will continue to drain him! If you have enough Movement Speed follow the cloud! He wont be able to do much as Static Link lasts longer than Shadow Dance. Still I would recommend to have considerable lockdown if you wish to kill him.

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What can I say here, Timbersaw is one tanky schizophrenic. He has so many methods of breaking Static Link and huge amounts of damage thanks to his skills and huge ammounts of HP Regen and armor thanks to Reactive Armor There is no one real way to stop Timbersaw as Razor but one way is outkiting him and moving with his chains. Try to avoid a Razor pick against Timbersaw. He will just make your laning hell.

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Skills

Razors skillset is designed to reflect his element. The Power and Quickness of a Bolt of Lightning.

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[Q] Plasma Field Minimum Damage: 30/50/70/90 Maximum Damage: 160/230/300/370 Vision Granted: 795 Mana Cost: 120 Cooldown: 14 Seconds

Razor's AOE Nuke. This skill creates a ring of energy that expands outwards from Razor at a range of 795 units dealing damage and providing vision. The damage dealt by this skill increases the further the ring is from Razor therefore it is a great tool for securing kills on low hp targets attempting to escape. The vision granted by this skill is also very useful to stop players from juking you and or providing vision on your Static Linked unit to resume the onslaught.

Mastering This Skill

A good way to master Plasma Field is simply by using it on Creep Waves. A good maxed Plasma Field should knock out the Ranged lane creep and leaving the Melee lane creeps at about 35% HP. Another great way to practice this skill is by harassing the opponent and making sure that both instances of damage from the Plasma Field is applied to the enemy at the same time. This will help you land a devastating 370 damage nuke to either get a kill or force the enemy to leave the lane.

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[W] Static Link Range: 600 Damage Drain Duration: 8 Buff Duration: 18-26 Damage Stolen Per Second: 7 / 14 / 21 / 28 Mana Cost: 50 / 50 / 50 / 50 Cooldown: 32 / 30 / 28 / 26 Seconds

Razor's most powerful skill, it can make or break him and it is at its most powerful in the Mid game stage of a match. This skill creates a link with an enemy Hero that you choose and begins to remove the damage from that Hero and will continue to drain until it has reached the end of its duration. Razor Can steal in total 56 / 112 / 168 / 224 Damage. This generally means that the victim literally does 0 physical damage at the stages where link is at its strongest ie. 10-25 minutes in a game. To put this in perspective, Razor can run around with damage equal to having a Divine Rapier at level 7 without risk of dropping the 6k item. For the mana that it costs and the effect it provides it should be at all times taken first. a successful 8 second link at level 1 can generally get you an easy first blood. You will be dealing 100+ damage every second with a level 1 link compared to a quick Plasma Field 100 damage nuke that has a long Cooldown. This spell can also target Magic Immune units before, during or after they have become Magic Immune. This spell is best targeted on the opponent that will deal the most brute damage. Razor's Power attribute derives from this skill.

Mastering This Skill

Static Link may sound easy enough to pull off but bare in mind that it has an 700 unit range. It may look large but can easily break with a well timed Force Staff etc. A good way to practice this skill is by testing it out on Mid Lane Bots. To test the distance use Static Link on the mid lane bot. since it was a targeted spell the bot will begin to retreat. Do not auto-attack the bot for the duration and stay near enough to the bot that you are not tanking creep/tower aggro but the link is still going. The bot will most likely resume farming as there has not been any of damage done and the spell has already been used. This will allow you to control the duration of the link and calculate distances fairly well as linking stationary targets generally doesn't help. Now that you have gotten the hang of the positioning required, since Razor has no form of Crowd Control (Stuns or Slows) you will find yourself chasing your enemy frequently. With the massive speed boost given by Unstable Current + Phase Boots + Sange and Yasha etc. you will have no difficulty catching up to any unfortunate Hero being caught out of position.

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[E] Unstable Current Slow Duration: 0.4 / 0.8 /1.2 / 1.6 Movement Speed Bonus: 4% / 8% / 12% / 16% Damage: 40 / 70 / 100 / 130

Razor's Passive that synergises with his other skills mainly Static Link. Razor gets his Quickness attribute from this as it is very easy to cap Razors speed with minimal items. A great chasing passive with a neat purge that can mess up single spell casters and can occasionally warn you if you are being charged from across the map by a Spirit Breaker since a little bolt of blue lightning exits Razors rear. Many times has this spell also saved my life in situations where I found myself in a 1v1 v.s. Juggernaut and his last resort at 50 HP was to use Omnislash. A Grave Mistake. Another example would be a fleeing Bane whom at low HP attempts to Brain Sap a Razor. Yet another mistake. The reason for this being is that the purge is triggered as the spell is cast not after, This is really neat for getting out of sticky situations and gives you that extra survivability as it may give you time to run away from something like a Vengeful Spirit's Magic Missile. One thing many people overlook is the fact that the slow from Unstable Current is actually a Purge This means it will remove Rune Buffs as well as certain spells like Omniknight's Repel.

Mastering This Skill

Unstable Current, although a passive is still good to learn when to take levels on the skill instead of Plasma Field or Eye of the Storm. It is important to understand the situations in which certain spells must be taken instead of others. A classic example is Razor laning against an Outworld Devourer in the middle lane. Maxing out Plasma Field is neat to deal a nice amount of damage to Outworld Devourer but you will find yourself being able to cast it only once due to Astral Imprisonment's Intelligence drain. Shifting the Build to getting a few early points in Unstable Current will mean every time Outworld Devourer attempts to Astral Imprison he will be punished and most of the time make an opening for a cheap Static Link

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[R] Eye of the Storm Damage Per Strike: 37.5 / 50 / 62.5 Armor Reduced Per Strike: 1 Strike Cooldown: 0.7 / 0.6 / 0.5 (0.55* / 0.45* / 0.35*) Mana Cost: 100 / 150 / 200 Cooldown Time: 80 / 70 / 60 Aghanim's Scepter: Targets Buildings

Razors Ultimate. A strong skill that is generally underestimated and regarded "Alright". I beg to differ. Razors ultimate is what allows him to be extremely useful past his 35 minutes of glory and why it is essential to build an Aghanim's Scepter on him. One of the flaws this spell has, much like Luna's Eclipse, is that it targets creeps. This means that to use it effectively you have to be isolated from neutrals or lane creeps to maximize the damage. This is what Razor is all about. Being in advantageous positions so that he can steal then deal damage. The Damage from Eye of the Storm is physical meaning it goes through Magic immunity and due to its armor shattering effect the damage from the lightning strikes begins to stack and increase. People who underestimate the power of this ultimate generally aren't playing Razor in the optimum positions. Remember No Spell is Bad or just "Alright" it all depends on the person playing the hero.

Mastering This Skill

Position is key with Eye of the Storm. To effectively master this skill force battles to occur in locations where creeps don't spawn and your team will have the upper hand. Places like the Rune spots Roshan Pit are great candidates. Preemptively activating this skill can also help in dealing the most damage as it lasts for 30 seconds but has a short cast time before you are able to move. This could be the difference in you demolishing a Phantom Assassin or her escaping with little HP. The cooldown is very short and does not cost too much mana so feel free to use it to farm the jungle quickly or to simply intimidate.

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Items

Razor can be surprisingly versatile depending on the items you chose to build on him. It is also vital to understand the situations in which certain items should be bought over others.

Starting Items

3 Iron Branches help with much needed last hitting power, HP and Mana. Great on anyone and builds into a Magic Wand which can increase your survivability.

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Circlet adds to your stat pool and provides more last hitting power. Can be built into a Wraith Band which then gets built into a Ring of Aquila.

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Slippers of Agility adds to your Primary Atribute there fore bonus damage attack speed and armor. Although small the items can make a huge difference in controlling your lane, having that extra bit of power to secure a kill etc. Can be built into a Wraith Band which then gets built into a Ring of Aquila.

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One Tango provides you with much needed Regen during the early stages of the game. This should be sufficient on Razor as you should not be attempting anything too risky early on. Keep in mind that if you find yourself on a very aggressive lane, feel free to purchase a Healing Salve instead of the Circlet after all a good Razor must be able to adapt to different lane opponents.

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Early Game Items

Magic Wand is a life saver that should be considered in nearly all situations. Keep in mind that although it is a great item, if you have an easy lane with no one casting any spells you can skip this to get an early Ring of Aquila and Phase Boots/ Power Treads also it can be sufficient to have a single Magic Stick as the burst healing will save your life.

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Ring of Aquila is a must as it provides everything an Agility carry needs, it is also easy to build as some of the items required to make it are already in your starting items. Although if you do purchase Ring of Aquila early, make sure to disable the aura as it will push the lane.

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A Bottle is an absolute nesesity if you are Midding Razor. Having good rune control can prevent many Ganks set up by a cheap Haste or Invisibility Rune. The Health and Mana regen is always nice as well. Not to mention... if you can get a Haste or Invisibility Rune you can pull off powerful unexpected ganks.

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Boot Choice

Power Treads is a Great choice to take on Razor as the stat manipulation can give you more control of the way you manage Razors power. Whether you need that one little bit of Mana to pull off a Plasma Field or an extra burst of Strength to make it out of a sticky situation, Power Treads goes well on Razor. A Major Advantage this item has over Phase Boots is the Attack Speed Bonus since Razor needs Attack speed to use Static Link effectively these boots synergieses well. I recommend taking Power Treads over Phase Boots if you will not need to chase the enemy to get kills.

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Phase Boots are a personal favorite of mine as it is easy to cap Razors speed when using the active. The extra 24 Damage is also incredibly helpful for last hitting. Phase Boots Synergieses well with both Static Link and Unstable Current as the Movement Speed burst can help you maintain a Static Link and can help you escape without being Creep Blocked. Take Phase Boots if you need the bonus Movement Speed over Power Treads. If you are not Familiar with Tread Switching, I recommend Phase Boots as it is one less thing to worry about.

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Boots of Travel Should be considered once you have completed your core items. The Massive movement speed bonus and the Teleporting active can save you money and gives you the advantage of being where you are needed in a flash. Do not hesitate to get an early Boots of Travel if you find that you are doing well, investing on this items will save you gold in the long run.

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Early Game Cores (I recommend you take ONE of these items)

Drum of Endurance is a cheap early game core which provides you with a neat aura that gives Razor what he needs, Movement Speed and Attack Speed. The active grants you a burst of Attack Speed and Movement speed that can be used during a Team Fight, Dedicated Push or when Disengaging. If someone on your team desires to build a Drum of Endurance you can skip it and replace it with a Mekansm or a Blade Mail. A Drum of Endurance coupled with a Ring of Aquila will grant you 228 HP + 5 Armor which is very useful at the early stages of the game. and it is easier to obtain compared to a Vanguard

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Although not necessary, Blade Mail can be used to punish High Magical, Single target Nukers like Lina and Lion. A well timed Blade Mail can destroy these types of casters and generally take them out of the fight early on. I would recommend getting Blade Mail only if you find yourself being a constant target for these Nukes or if there is an enemy Death Prophet around. The Armor and Damage given by this item is comparable to a Phase Boots + Ring of Aquila + Drum of Endurance so picking up a Blade Mail against High Physical damage can also be worth your time.

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Better than a Vanguard, Razor has the Mana capacity to be a viable Mekansm holder. If your team already has a Mekansm do not buy it. Go for either Drum of Endurance or Blade Mail as having 2 Mekansm's can be costly and its effects made redundant. The Bonus Regen and Stats make Mekansm superior to Vanguard. Keep in mind that if you have purchased the Mekansm, it is good practice to carry only one of these support items. For example if you are Razor holding onto Drum of Endurance + Mekansm + Pipe of Insight and you die prematurely. All the bonuses will be lost. Share the support role with your team mates, it makes all the difference.

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Magic Reduction Options (Chose one or the other, Both not Recommended, Build a Linkens if there are counters around)

If you find yourself in the situation where the enemy team is not heavily based on Crowd Control but they still deal a lot of magical damage it is wiser to purchase a Pipe of Insight over Black King Bar The Regen from pipe, magical reduction and Unstable Current makes Razor tankier.

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Purchase Black King Bar if the enemy team has heavy Crowd Control. Black King Bar is extremely useful in most situations and provides Razor with uninterrupted chasing while Static Linking. The Bonus Strength and Damage are a nice bonus. The only Downside from taking a Black King Bar is that it will cause Unstable Current's purge to be useless. Therefore if the enemy has less Crowd Control but many single target abilities, get a Pipe of Insight instead.

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This item has left me breathless! its utility is incredible on Razor. It is a free Unstable Current proc and the Mana regeneration is fantastic for constant Eye of the Storms and Plasma Fields. If you are doing well and are being targeted less frequently or if you have enemy Bloodseekers around, buy a Linken's Sphere! After all it will save you compared to being forced to stand still looking all pretty with a Black King Bar.

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The Late Game Cores

Sange and Yasha has the perfect synergy with Razor Provides HP, Damage, Attack Speed, Movement Speed and a fantastic Passive that slows making chasing a thing of the past. At 4100 gold this item is easy to build. Much like Razors other items Sange and Yasha allows Razor to come online very early in the game. After you have decided the path you will take in terms of Magic Resistance, Sange and Yasha should be at the top of your shopping list.

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Aghanim's Scepter should always be purchased as a maxed out Eye of the Storm can demolish any tower within seconds. Its strength is comparable to a Diabolic Edict that lasts twice as long! As mentioned before Razor tapers off after 35 minutes into the game so your role begins to shift and with an Aghanim's Scepter you become a formidable Pusher. As your Hard Carry comes online you let them deal with the fights as you begin to single-handedly take down Towers and the Raxes. The stats from the scepter helps Razor tank up and when coupled with a Refresher Orb can deal a gargantuan amount of damage.

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The Late Luxuries / Situational Items

So the Lategame has been reached and this could be Good News or Bad News. But if you have gotten to the stage where you can consider these items, you are doing well. Keep in mind that a Faceless Void with a Butterfly is better than a Razor with Butterfly. I cannot stress enough how important it is for you to have at least Double Rax at this point but I digress. No one on your team has an Assault Cuirass? Razor is a great candidate as the Armor and Attack Speed work well with his abilities. Butterfly is Great on any Agility hero the evasion can make anything incredibly tanky. If your team already has armor reducing skills Daedalus is neat to get as the Crits blow huge chunks of heroes not to mention the damage stolen from Static Link is also multiplied. If you are considering getting a Desolator use its armor reduction on buildings. Eye of the Storm will then obliterate the target building. Heaven's Halberd and Manta Style can be purchased after you have made your impact on the game. Sange and Yasha can be Disassembled meaning you can still use the Sange for the Heaven's Halberd and the Yasha for Manta Style. With these 2 items you can become your Hard Carry's body guard. Disarm from Heaven's Halberd will take out the enemy carry for a short duration and Manta Style will beef up Razor and Create tanky illusions that can: push, bait and tank damage. Eye of Skadi Can be considered if you have not yet purchased a Desolator It is also a strong alternative to Sange and Yasha as the slow is much stronger. The HP, Mana and Stats it provides are great also the Passive ability stacks with Sange and Yasha's Greater Maim meaning you can cripple anyone trying to escape from you. Heart of Tarrasque Why would you not get this item? its fantastic!. Purchase Heart almost always after your core. Its usefulness is unrivaled. Ethereal Blade is a nice pickup to get if you are facing heroes like Ursa who really don't give 2 damns about Static Link until you have fully drained them. Grabbing an Ethereal Blade after your cores is a good idea if you can get it early enough as it will deal some decent damage, slow your target and give you some easy chase under towers or against other 'Man Up and Fight' Heroes. Monkey King Bar is a great addition to Razor if the enemy has a carry that decided to grab an item that derives from Talisman of Evasion or heroes with evasion like Phantom Assassin's Blur. The true strike passive will guarantee to chunk these heroes with naturally low HP. Shiva's Guard is a really nice item to get on Razor as the active acts as an AOE Eye of Skadi and the Armor/Mana given can help Razor if he is playing a more supportive tank. So thanks to Wuzzly for pointing out this phenomenal item. At first glance i thought it would have made Unstable Current redundant. But no! Linken's Sphere gives you a free Unstable Current Proc without the nasties that would usually follow like Bloodseeker's Rupture or Lina's Laguna Blade! Definitely get this item if you can and it will be nearly impossible to pin you down!

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The Gimick Items (Advanced Players)

This is probably the section that you are most curious about. These items should only be considered if you have competent team mates that can handle the game if something goes wrong. Also they are hella fun to use and scare the bejebus out of any unsuspecting player.

Again if you don't mind potentially losing, Do Not Use These Items!

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Blink Dagger is one of the bigger eyebrow raising items on Razor. To use Blink Dagger effectively you need to have mastered the range of Static Link if you can farm a Blink Dagger before 15 Minutes it is viable anything later and you are setting yourself back to the point of uselessness. Once you have your trusty Blink Dagger Get close to your pray and begin the link they will automatically run from you. at this point. Blink right next to them. and hopefully it is a kill secured. bare in mind that this works on heroes who have no escapes and are generally slow moving like Axe, Phantom Assassin or Lifestealer. If you can pull this off you will find yourself amused. but again. do not try it unless you are willing to lose.

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Eul's Scepter of Divinity is not a bad item to get in general. makes anything really quick and goes well with Unstable Current the trick to this item is securing a full Static Link. Simply Static Link an enemy then Cyclone them when they begin to escape, move to a better position then begin your onslaught. This item also has a purge that if used on yourself, can help you run away or catch up to a Lifestealer who attempts to Open Wounds you. Not to mention you can use it as a form of Crowd Control if the enemies have figured out what Town Portal Scrolls are!

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Rod of Atos would be the Ranged Hero equivalent of Vanguard and the slow active makes it a cheaper alternative to Sange and Yasha. if you find that you are behind, getting a Rod of Atos might be worth your time!.

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Force Staff isn't bad either. it can help in catching up to the enemy you are trying to Static Link. I don't think it has the same .wow. factor as Blink Dagger.

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Mask of Madness is an interesting item on razor because it is actually really good in the right circumstances. Razor is not new to this concept as he once had a skill called "Unholy Fevor" which literally gave him a Mask of Madness. This item works well when you are chasing an isolated enemy. Simply Static Link the enemy then once the link has reached about 4 seconds, activate your Mask of Madness. Nothing is scarier than a razor with 300 damage pummeling at you with a pocket haste rune while restoring his hp. Truly an overlooked strategy but I have tested it in pubs plenty of times to know that nothing can escape a good Mask of Madness Razor.

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Refresher Orb is a great item on razor as both Eye of the Storm and Static Link stack on each other. If you find yourself in a good position nearing Razor's peak time (Before 35 minutes) get this item as it does not disappoint. Having 2 Eye of the Storms Active can destroy any unfortunate enemy that is unlucky enough to receive its full blast. Not to mention Towers do not stand a chance against an Aghanim's Scepter Eye of the Storm. Finally if you have reached the end of your Black King Bar, Refresher Orb will allow for Black King Bar to be activated a further 4 seconds doubling its duration if used properly. Be aware that if you do decide to go down this path you are taking a risk; Sacrifice Tank for Power. There are 2 outcomes... Complete Dominance or an Epic Failure. Choose Carefully.

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Final Notes!

Razor is a good hero. He does lose some of his strength in the Late Game mainly because other Hard carries have a way to bypass Razors link or pin him down with Abyssal Blades or Stop his damage through evasion etc. Razor's Job is not to Carry, Its to make room.

Play your cards right and you will find playing Razor to be Rewarding.

This Build is intended to Highlight the Best/Worst Case scenarios in which a Razor can be put in. In certain games some of these scenarios change completely so make sure to adjust!.

And as always GL, HF!